ROLL UP, ROLL UP...

Managers get 15 players in Fantasy Football and many are tempted to pick 11 first-teamers and fill the bench with cheaptat, to be brushed under the carpet (woven from points-winning superstars). But this strategy simply doesn't work.

Even if your entire first XI manages to avoid suspension or injury, if you play your cards right, you can utilise your entire squad every week - which means all 15 of your men should be scoring for you on a regular basis.

On Saturday you should pick a team of players that will appear that day and bench anybody who will play on Sunday.

So on the first day that means you might be leaving Eden Hazard and David Luiz, for example, out of the side - because Chelsea play Hull on Sunday.

But on Sunday morning, log on and sub in the men from your bench - that way you can play all 15 players every week.

If
you're going out on Saturday night it's best that you do just select
your finest XI - unless you are extremely confident of shrugging off
your hangover to make some substitutions early doors.

Leave them out: The likes of David Luiz (left) and Eden Hazard (right) should be benched on Saturday

Once the season gets underway, we'll look at specific players to transfer in and who to axe. But as you have unlimited transfers until August 17, until then we'll settle for a more general look at Fantasy Football strategy and player selection.

GOALKEEPERS

It's best to pick two goalkeepers who generally tend to play on different days to each other. This means picking one from a team that plays in Europe and frequently plays on Sundays, and one from a defensive-minded side that normally feature on Saturday.

This means you can often play both of them, rather than them both playing at once. Europa League teams will almost always have fixtures re-arranged for Sundays - and Champions League clubs will often be part of Sky's 'Super Sunday' billing.

Teams like Stoke, who rarely feature on television, will often play on Saturday afternoons and are tight at the back.

Staying on Saturday: You won't see too many Stoke games moved for Sunday television purposes

Another thing to consider is fixture rotation. Some teams will ALWAYS play away while others play at home on the same day. Fulham and Chelsea, for example. This means you will always be able to field a goalkeeper playing in a home fixture - which means you will likely keep more clean sheets.

Picking David de Gea and Joe Hart, for instance, would guarantee you a home fixture for a top side each week - although it would be costly.

Looking at the goalkeepers on offer, pairing Tottenham's Hugo Lloris (in the Europa League, reasonable defence) with Norwich's John Ruddy (a solid 'Saturday 3pm' team), could be useful combination. Their fixtures also match (or clash, rather) for the first six weeks. By then, we'll have ascertained which sides are looking watertight and who seems good value, so we can re-assess the goalkeeper position.

DEFENDERS

Picking a defence with fixture rotation in mind is even more beneficial than doing so for your goalkeeper assets. Most fantasy football players tend to start three defenders, given that midfielders and strikers generally score more points.

That means you can make sure your defence rotates in pairs - and always have some games that look ripe for a clean sheet.

West Ham and Southampton rotate well, with Razvan Rat (£3.3m) and Luke Shaw (£4.1m) priced attractively. Both like going forward and could add a few goals and assists. Having cheaper players like these also mean you can give your attacking and midfield picks some extra zest.

Bargain bucket: Razvan Rat costs but tuppence and could prove to be a wise buy

For your other pair you could look at a higher value combination - an Arsenal and a Tottenham defender, or City and United. Under Jose Mourinho, Chelsea are expected to do well and pairing David Luiz (£6.3m) with Fulham's Brede Hangeland (£4.4m) could work nicely.

A general rule is to try to pick players that will start each and every game, bar injury or suspension, so when a team has lots of options in one position, it could make selecting any of the players hazardous.

No-one's really quite sure what the situation with Branislav Ivanovic (£6.7) or Cesar Azpilicueta (£5.4m) is, regarding Chelsea's right-back position. If the Spaniard can hold down a first-team berth, he will be a must-pick, because he is a cheap way in to a strong defensive unit.

MIDFIELDERS

Things are a lot simpler as we move up the pitch. Rotation doesn't matter as you should always have faith in your attacking players to score points home or away.

If you're a seasoned Fantasy Football player you'll know instinctively to avoid players who don't contribute in the game - no matter how good they are.

Take, for example, Michael Carrick. Priced at an eye-watering £9m, the Manchester United midfielder is not good value because he rarely scores and only picks up a handful of assists.

That's not a reflection on his ability - I think he's an excellent player and a key part of United's midfield - but he wouldn't get near my Fantasy Football side.

No thanks: Michael Carrick (top) is a fine player but, priced at £9m, can take a hike

What you could try to do is ensure you have a spread of players from different sides. If you have two midfielders and one striker all from Tottenham, for example, you are cutting off access to other teams' points.

If Tottenham score twice, in any given game, you can get a maximum haul of two goals and two assists from those three players.

But if you had one Tottenham midfielder, one Everton midfielder and one West Ham striker, instead, you open yourself up to benefit from however many goals all three sides scored.

That's not to say it's a disadvantage to have two top attackers from the same team - picking Robin van Persie and whichever United winger is providing the goods probably won't do you any harm.

STRIKERS

A player's all-round game doesn't matter in Fantasy Football. I think Didier Drogba was a better player than Ruud van Nistelrooy, but I'd pick the Dutchman in my side ahead of him every day of the week. Metronomic consistency is the order of the day.

That's why players like Darren Bent, if he finds a new club, could turn out to be an essential pick. A pure goalscorer who will likely lead the line for his new club, Bent only costs £7.1m but could easily end up with more goals than the likes of expensive Fernando Torres (£10.2m), given that the Spaniard is fighting with Romelu Lukaku and Demba Ba for a starting berth.

Return: A Fantasy Football hero in ages past, if the lesser spotted Darren Bent returns, he could be essential

It's also best to wait-and-see when you don't know if a striker is first choice. If you look at Manchester City's squad, it's hard to tell if any of the four strikers (Edin Dzeko, Sergio Aguero, Alvaro Negredo and Stevan Jovetic) will be guaranteed a regular start.

It might be that Manuel Pellegrini picks his favourites but then rests them in some games against the league's lesser lights - which spells disaster for Fantasy Football managers around the country, rubbing their hands and hoping to witness a goal-fest.

THREE FOR FREE

1. Some of the new boys are bargain material.

Sometimes the pricing is way-off when a player is new to the league. Wilfried Bony costs £6.6m but could end up being a revelation in Swansea's side. You clearly think so too, given he's the fifth most selected player so far - and Michu, last year's bargain - languishes in 26th.

No doubt that's because he's been hit with a £9.7m price tag, thanks to his exploits last season. His returns are likely to be impacted by Bony's presence too - as Michu played up front last term but now Bony is here to take that role.

The aforementioned Rat only costs £3.3m - presumably because his squad status at West Ham is unknown. But, given that he has played well at Champions League side Shakhtar Donetsk for several years, he should be a regular starter and an extremely cheap way in to a reasonable defence.

Potential: Wilfried Bony could score a lot of goals and is priced quite attractively

2. Look out for players pushing the boundaries of their positions.

Sometimes a player, considered a defender in the game, ends up being pushed into midfield. Seamus Coleman (£4.3m), at Everton, is a good example. He started off at right back but often plays as a winger or wing back. David Luiz is another, who might play in centre midfield.

If you can find players who play further up the pitch than they are classified in the game, they could prove to be excellent value.

Progressive: Seamus Coleman could play further up the pitch for Everton than his positional status in the game

3. Think about set piece stars.

Often, players' natural points totals are boosted by goals and assists from free-kicks and penalties. If a defender, like Leighton Baines, takes his side's set pieces, it's almost like getting two players in one, because he earns defensive points and contributes heavily to the attack.

Obviously, Baines is well known on this front and this is reflected in his £6.6m price-tag, but Hull midfielder Robert Koren, at £4.8m, could be good value.